Video interactive system

ABSTRACT

A video interactive system includes at least one input device, a plurality of wireless positioning devices, at least one interactive device, and an image processing device. The input device provides image data. Each wireless positioning device is disposed in an operation space and transmits a positioning signal. The interactive device is paired with the input device and has a plurality of sensors for receiving the positioning signals. The interactive device is movably disposed in the operation space and generates action information corresponding to a display device. The image processing device is electrically connected to the input device and the display device. The image processing device receives the image data from the input device and outputs the image data to the display device based on the action information.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

This invention relates to a video interactive system, and in particular,it relates to a video interactive system for display devices.

Description of Related Art

Technological developments change people's lifestyle. For example,presenters at meetings now use notebook computers to project images onscreens, rather than using overhead projectors with transparencies, andparticipants of meetings use electronic devices in lieu of paper fordiscussion. In a meeting situation where multiple electronic devices(such as computers) are used, a central control computer may be used toswitch among the multiple electronic devices, so that images provided bythe multiple electronic devices can be selectively projected on thescreen to facilitate discussions among meeting participants. However,this method requires one of the multiple computers to be used as thecentral control computer, and an operator is required to perform theswitching. When the presenter and the operator of the central controlcomputer are not the same person, communication between them may not besmooth. Thus, the system for using multiple electronic devices inmeetings still needs improvements.

SUMMARY

An object of the present invention is to provide a video interactivesystem which can improve the smooth operation of video interaction.

To achieve the above objects, the present invention provides a videointeractive system which includes at least one input device, a pluralityof wireless positioning devices, at least one interactive device, and animage processing device. The input device provides image data. Eachwireless positioning device is disposed in an operation space andtransmits a positioning signal. The interactive device is paired withthe input device, and has a plurality of sensors configured to receivethe positioning signals. The interactive device is movably disposed inthe operation space and generates action information corresponding to adisplay device. The image processing device is electrically connected tothe input device and the display device. The image processing devicereceives the image data from the input device and outputs the image datato the display device based on the action information from theinteractive device.

In another aspect, the present invention provides a video interactivesystem which includes at least one interactive device and an imageprocessing device. The video interactive system is operated in anoperation space, where at least one display device, a plurality ofwireless positioning devices, and at least one input device are providedin the operation space. The display device is installed on a firstmounting surface. Each wireless positioning device is disposed in anoperation space and transmits a positioning signal. The input deviceprovides image data. The interactive device is paired with the inputdevice, and has a plurality of sensors configured to receive thepositioning signals. The interactive device is movably disposed in theoperation space and generates action information corresponding to thedisplay device. The image processing device is electrically connected tothe input device and the display device. The image processing devicereceives the image data from the input device and outputs the image datato the display device based on the action information from theinteractive device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a video interactive system according toan embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 schematically illustrates the video interactive system during asetting operation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 schematically illustrates an interactive device according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4A schematically illustrates the interactive device generatingaction information.

FIG. 4B schematically illustrates the interactive device receivingpositioning signals.

FIGS. 5A and 5B schematically illustrate an interactive device accordingto another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 schematically illustrates a paring operation to pair theinteractive device with an input device.

FIG. 7 schematically illustrates the video interactive system during asetting operation according to another embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 8 schematically illustrates a dragging operation using theinteractive device to drag images between multiple display devices.

FIG. 9 schematically illustrates an image scaling operation using theinteractive device.

FIG. 10 schematically illustrates a video interactive system usingmultiple interactive devices and multiple display devices according toan embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 schematically illustrates an interactive device according toanother embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 12A and 12B schematically illustrate an operation of theinteractive device based on a confirmation signal.

FIGS. 13A, 13B and 13C schematically illustrate an operation of theinteractive device based on a switching signal.

FIG. 13D schematically illustrates another operation of the interactivedevice based on a switching signal.

FIGS. 14A and 14B schematically illustrate an operation of theinteractive device based on a briefing signal.

FIG. 15 schematically illustrates another operation of the interactivedevice based on a briefing signal.

FIGS. 16A and 16B schematically illustrate an operation of theinteractive device in response to a central control signal.

FIGS. 17A and 17B schematically illustrate another operation of theinteractive device based on a central control signal.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a video interactive system 1 accordingto an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the videointeractive system 1 includes an input device 10, wireless positioningdevices 20 and 20A, an interactive device 30, and an image processingdevice 40. The video interactive system 1 operates in an operation space2. In the example of FIG. 1, the operation space 2 includes a displaydevice 3 installed on a mounting surface 4. The wireless positioningdevices 20 and 20A are disposed in the operation space 2, and transmitpositioning signals. The image processing device 40, which may beimplemented by electrical circuitry including logic circuits and/orprocessors with associated computer readable non-volatile memories wherethe processors execute computer executable program code stored in thememories, is electrically connected to the input device 10 and thedisplay device 3. In this embodiment, the input device 10 may be, forexample, a smartphone or a notebook computer, which generates image dataand outputs the image data via the image processing device 40 to thedisplay device 3. The operation space 2 is a three-dimensional space andmay be, for example, a conference room, and the mounting surface 4 maybe a wall or furniture of the conference room. The conference room hasmultiple walls that define the boundary of the operation space 2. Theimage processing device 40 is operable to calculate operation spaceinformation (e.g., a spatial coordinate system including x, y, z axes)based on the boundary and the positioning signals. However, theinvention is not limited to this; alternatively, the wirelesspositioning devices 20 and 20A are operable to calculate the operationspace information based on the boundary and provide the positioninformation to the image processing device 40 (which requires the imageprocessing device 40 and the wireless positioning devices 20 and 20A tobe electrically connected to each other). The interactive device 30 ispaired with the input device 10. The interactive device 30 receives thepositioning signal via sensors located on the interactive device 30 (notshown in this drawing). The image processing device 40 determines thethree-dimensional position (e.g., position expressed in the (x, y, z)coordinate system) of the interactive device 30 in the operation space 2based on the operation space information and the positioning signals.The interactive device 30 is movably disposed in the operation space 2and generates action information corresponding to the display device 3.

More specifically, the interactive device 30 obtains action informationbased on the positioning signals. Action information refers to theposture and/or movement trajectory of the interactive device 30 withinthe operation space 2. In the example shown in FIG. 1, the interactivedevice 30 is postured in the operation space 2 with its pointing endpointing to the display device 3. The image processing device 40receives the action information, and output the image data to thedisplay device 3 based on the action information. In other words, theimage processing device 40 determines the posture of the interactivedevice 30 based on the action information, and outputs the image data tothe corresponding display device based on the posture of the interactivedevice 30. In the example shown in FIG. 1, the image data generated bythe input device 10 is output to the display device 3, so that thedisplay device 3 displays image P1. This way, the image data can beoutput to the designated display device without using a central controlcomputer.

FIG. 2 schematically illustrates an example of the video interactivesystem 1 outputting image data. In this example, a setting operation ofthe image processing device 40 and the display device 3 is carried outbefore outputting the image data of the input device 10. During thesetting operation, the image processing device 40 outputs markinformation to the display device 3, so that a mark M1 is displayed onthe display device 3 as shown in FIG. 2. The interactive device 30 ispointed to the display device 3 in response to the mark information;i.e., when the display device 3 displays the mark M1, the user pointsthe interactive device 30 to the display device 3 that displays the markM1. By this operation, the interactive device 30 outputs initial actioninformation to the image processing device 40. Similar to theabove-mentioned action information, initial action information refers tothe posture and/or movement trajectory of the interactive device 30within the operation space 2. As shown in FIG. 2, the interactive device30 is postured in the operation space 2 with its pointing end pointingto the display device 3. The image processing device 40 receives andstores the initial action information, and records the display device 3that corresponds to the initial action information (i.e. the imageprocessing device 40 correlates the initial action information with thedisplay device 3 that is displaying the mark M1). Thus, after thesetting operation, the image processing device 40 is able to outputimage data to a designated display device 3 at any given time bycomparing the action information at that time with the stored initialaction information. The setting operation can reduce the calculationburden on the image processing device 40, and improve accuracy of theoutput.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the display device 3, atthe time of system setup, typically communicates its device information(such as Extended Display Identification Data, EDID) to the imageprocessing device 40 or the input device 10. The device information mayinclude information about the physical size of the displayed area of thedisplay device, which may be used by the image processing device 40 tomore accurately determine whether the interactive device 30 is pointedto the display device 3 even when the interactive device 30 is notexactly pointed to the mark M1.

FIG. 3 schematically illustrates an interactive device 30 according toan embodiment of the present invention. As described earlier, theinteractive device 30 is configured to receive the positioning signalsusing its sensors. As shown in FIG. 3, the interactive device 30 hassensors 310 and 310A which receives the positioning signals. Theinteractive device 30 has an operation section 32 and a sensing section34. The operation section 32 allows the user to hold the interactivedevice 30, and the sensing section 34 is where the sensors 310 and 310Aare located. For example, the operation section 32 may have an elongatedshape suitable to be help by a user's hand, and the sensing section 34is located at one end of the operation section 32.

FIG. 4A schematically illustrates the interactive device generatingaction information. To more conveniently illustrate the relationshipbetween the interactive device 30 and the wireless positioning devices20 and 20A, this drawing omits the input device and image processingdevice. As shown in FIG. 4A, the wireless positioning devices 20 and 20Aare disposed in the operation space 2, and transmits positioningsignals. For example, each of the wireless positioning devices 20 and20A may be a laser transmitter which generates a laser beam that scansthe operation space 2 with predetermined timing. In one example, thelaser beam forms a plane that is swept in a particular direction, forexample, a plane passing through the positioning device and extending ina substantially horizontal direction and is scanned in the verticaldirection. Preferably, the position of each laser transmitter in the (x,y, z) coordinate system, the angular speed of the laser beam scanning,and the starting angle and time of each scan are known. The differentlaser transmitters may use different laser light wavelengths. Each ofthe multiple sensors 310, 310A on the interactive device 30 receives thelaser signals from each of the laser transmitters, and the timing ofreceipt of the laser signal from each laser transmitter by each sensoris obtained. Based on the timing information of the received lasersignals and the above-mentioned known information, the positions of themultiple sensors can be calculated. In an exemplary algorithm, with theabove-mentioned known information, and based on the timing of when thesensor 310 received the laser signal of the wireless positioning device20, the interactive device 30 can calculate the angle of the linebetween the sensor 310 and the wireless positioning device 20 at thattime point. The same calculation can be carried out for each of thesensors 310 and 310A with respect to each of the wireless positioningdevices 20 and 20A. Then, the positions of the sensors 310 and 310A inthe (x, y, z) coordinate system can be calculated using triangulation.Further, because the positions of the sensors 310, 310A with respect tothe overall interactive device 30 are known, the position and thepointing angle of the interactive device 30 can be determine. This way,the interactive device 30 can determine its action information,including the position and pointing angle. The image processing device40 can therefore determine, based on the action information, where theinteractive device 30 is pointed to. In the example shown in FIG. 4A,the image processing device 40 determines that the interactive device 30is pointing along the direction D1 to the display device 3 on themounting surface 4. In this embodiment, the interactive device 30calculates a projected location on the mounting surface 4 based on the(x, y, z) position and the pointing angle of the interactive device 30(the location of the mounting surface 4 is known), and based on thisprojected location, the image processing device 40 enables the user touse the interactive device 30 to perform corresponding operations on thedisplay device 3 as described in more detail later. Alternatively, theabove calculations required to determine the projected location of theinteractive device 30 on the mounting surface 4 can be performed by theimage processing device 40 based on the position and pointing angle ofthe interactive device 30. More generally, various technologies usingwireless positioning devices and sensors to determine the position ofthe sensors in a given space are known, and can be adopted for thisembodiment.

FIG. 4B schematically illustrates the interactive device receivingpositioning signals. As shown in FIG. 4B, the wireless positioningdevice 20 scans the space using a plane of light schematicallyillustrated as the solid line triangle and the dashed line triangle, andthe interactive device 30 receives the positioning signals (the light).In this example, the user holds the interactive device 30 and swings itto the right as depicted by the direction D2. FIG. 4B depicts theinteractive device 30 located at an initial position (as indicated bythe interactive device depicted by dashed lines), and the sensor 310receiving a positioning signal (as depicted by the dashed linetriangle); it also depicts the interactive device 30 located at acurrent position (as indicated by the interactive device depicted bysolid lines), and the sensor 310A receiving a positioning signal (asdepicted by the solid line triangle). As described earlier, differentones of the multiple sensors on the interactive device 30 receivepositioning signals at different times depending on the location of theinteractive device, and the timing information is used to determine theposition of the sensors and thus the interactive device. In thisembodiment, the image processing device 40 can determine the movementtrajectory of the interactive device 30 along the direction D2 based onthe action information provided by the interactive device 30 at the twodifferent times. It should be understood that this example is onlyschematic; the image processing device 40 preferably uses the signalsfrom multiple wireless positioning devices (as shown in FIG. 4A) to moreaccurately calculate the movement trajectory.

FIGS. 5A and 5B schematically illustrate the interactive device 30according to another embodiment of the present invention. As shown inFIG. 5A, the interactive device 30 in this embodiment has an operationsection 32 and a sensing section 34. The sensing section 34 has multiplesensors located on multiple facets. FIG. 5B illustrates a view toward afront facet 340 of the sensing section 34. As shown in FIG. 5B, theinteractive device 30 has a pointing direction S (i.e. its longitudinaldirection), and the front facet 340 of the sensing section 34 isperpendicular to the pointing direction S. The interactive device 30also has multiple connecting facets (341, 342, 343, and 344). Eachconnecting facet is joined to the front facet 340 at one end and joinedto the operation section 32 at the opposite end (i.e. the end oppositeto the end that is joined to the front facet 340) (see FIG. 5A). Each ofthe front facet 340 and the connecting facets has at least one sensor(310, 310A). In the example of FIGS. 5A and 5B, each of the connectingfacets (341, 342, 343, and 344) has two sensors, and the front facet 340has one sensor. Providing sensors on the multiple connecting facetsenables the interactive device 30 to obtain more accurate actioninformation. As illustrated in FIGS. 5A and 5B, the connecting facets(341, 342, 343, and 344) may be non-perpendicular to the front facet340. The non-perpendicular relationship between the connecting facetsand the front facet can increase the sensitivity of the laser signalreception by the sensors, because the sensors can still adequatelyreceive the laser signals from the positioning device even when the userrotates the interactive device.

FIG. 6 schematically illustrates a paring operation of the interactivedevice 30 and the input device 10. In the embodiment of FIG. 6, theinteractive device 30 is paired with the input device 10 using arecognition mark 330 carried on the exterior of the interactive device30. As shown in FIG. 6, the interactive device 30 has a recognition mark330, and the input device 10 has a camera 110. The recognition mark 330may be, for example, a 2d barcode or other machine readable code. Thecamera 110 may be, for example, a rear facing camera of a smartphone.The recognition mark 330 is used to pair the interactive device 30 withthe input device 10, so that the image processing device 40 can generateoutput images for the input device 10 based on the action information ofthe paired interactive device 30. In one embodiment, the input device 10uses its camera 110 to read the recognition mark 330 in order to pairitself with the interactive device 30, to generate pairing information.Based on the pairing information received from the input device 10 andthe action information generated by the paired interactive device 30,the image processing device 40 assigns an output channel to the inputdevice 10, to output the image data generated by the input device 10 tothe display device that corresponds to the action information. In otherwords, by pairing the interactive device 30 with a specific input device10, the image processing device 40 can know the paring relationship ofthe input device 10 that pairs and the interactive device 30 based onthe pairing information. Thus, when the image processing device 40determines the posture of the interactive device 30, the imageprocessing device 40 can output the image data generated by the pairedinput device 10 to the corresponding display device 3.

FIG. 7 schematically illustrates the video interactive system in asetting operation in another embodiment. FIG. 7 illustrates the settingof multiple input devices. As shown in FIG. 7, the operation space 2 hasa mounting surface 4 and another, different mounting surface 4A. Themounting surface 4 has a display device 3 installed thereon, and themounting surface 4A has a display device 3A installed thereon. Duringthe setting operation, the image processing device 40 sequentiallytransmits respective mark information to the multiple display devices 3and 3A. As shown in FIG. 7, a mark M1 is displayed on the display device3 based on the mark information. Based on the mark information, theinteractive device 30 points to the display device 3; i.e., when thedisplay device 3 displays the mark M1, the user points the interactivedevice 30 to the display device 3 that displays the mark M1. This way,the interactive device 30 transmits the initial action information(corresponding to display device 3) to the image processing device 40.Then, a mark M2 is displayed on the display device 3A. Based on thisdisplayed mark, the use points the interactive device 30 to the displaydevice 3A. As shown in FIG. 7, the interactive device 30 is postured inthe operation space 2 with its pointing end pointing to the displaydevice 3A. The image processing device 40 receives the initial actioninformation (corresponding to display device 3A) from the interactivedevice 30. Based on the two pieces of initial action information, theimage processing device 40 records the corresponding display devices.Thus, after the setting is complete, the image processing device 40 cancompare the action information at any given time with the initial actioninformation to determine whether to output the image data to the displaydevice 3 or the display device 3A.

The setting of the multiple display devices is preferably accomplishedusing a single interactive device 30. The image processing device 40records the corresponding display devices based on the postures of theinteractive device 30 at the time of the setting operation. When otherinteractive devices 30 are to the system added later, that record of thedisplay devices can be used for operations of the other interactivedevices, and there is no need to re-do the setting operation.

FIG. 8 schematically illustrates a dragging operation using theinteractive device 30 to drag images between multiple display devices.As shown in FIG. 8, the mounting surface 4 of the operation space 2 hasa display device 3 installed thereon, and the mounting surface 4A has adisplay device 3A installed thereon. The interactive device 30 is pairedwith the input device 10. As shown in FIG. 8, when the user swings theinteractive device 30 to the left as depicted by the direction D3,whereby the interactive device 30 changes from previously pointing tothe display device 3 to now pointing to the display device 3A, the imageprocessing device 40 switches the output channel based on the actioninformation received from the interactive device 30, so as to change thedestination of output the image data from previously outputting todisplay device 3 to now outputting to display device 3A. As shown inFIG. 8, the display device 3 initially displays an image (as depicted bythe dashed lines); after the image processing device 40 changes theoutput channel based on the change in posture of the interactive device30, the display device 3A now displays the image P1. This accomplishesthe dragging of the image between display devices. In other embodiments,the above operation may be combined with another user interface featureof the interactive device 30. For example, the operation section 32 ofthe interactive device 30 may additionally be provided with pushbuttons; and dragging may be accomplished when the user presses a buttonwhile swinging the interactive device 30 in a certain direction.

FIG. 9 schematically illustrates an image scaling operation using theinteractive device 30. As shown in FIG. 9, when the interactive device30 moves toward the display device 3, as depicted by the direction D4,to a position closer to the display device 3, the image processingdevice 40 enlarges the image displayed on the display device 3 based onsuch action information. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 9, the initial imageP1 (see FIG. 1) has an overall size that fits the size of the displaydevice 3. Based on the change of posture of the interactive device 30described above, the image processing device 40 enlarges the image P1 toan image P1′, thereby accomplishing the scaling of the image. In otherembodiments, the above operation may be combined with buttons on theinteractive device 30. For example, scaling may be accomplished when theuse presses a button while moving the interactive device 30 along alinear direction closer to or farther away from the display device 3.

FIG. 10 schematically illustrates a video interactive system usingmultiple interactive devices and multiple display devices. As shown inFIG. 10, the mounting surface 4 of the operation space 2 has a displaydevice 3 installed thereon, and the mounting surface 4A has a displaydevice 3A installed thereon. The interactive device 30 is paired withthe input device 10, and the interactive device 30A is paired with theinput device 10A. As shown in FIG. 10, based on the pairing informationand the action information generated by the interactive device 30, theimage processing device 40 assigns an output channel to the input device10, to output the image data from the input device 10 to the displaydevice 3. On the other hand, based on the pairing information and theaction information generated by the interactive device 30A, the imageprocessing device 40 assigns an output channel to the input device 10A,to output the image data from the input device 10A to the display device3A. As shown in FIG. 10, an image P1 is displayed on the display device3 and an image P2 is displayed on the display device 3A. This way, thedifferent input devices 10, 10A can display their respective imageinformation to the corresponding display devices 3, 3A.

FIG. 11 schematically illustrates an interactive device 30 according toanother embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 11, theinteractive device 30 has an operation section 32 and a sensing section34. The operation section 32 has a user interface 350, which may be, forexample, a touch-sensitive display panel. By selecting the specificfunctions on the user interface 350, the user may perform specificoperations. In the example of FIG. 11, the user interface 350 displaysmultiple icons (C1, C2, C3, C4, and C5), each of which representing aspecific function. The image processing device 40 can perform differentoperations based on the selected icon and the action information. Forexample, icon C1 may represent a confirm function, icon C2 may representa switch function, icon C1 may represent a briefing function, icon C4may represent a central control function, and icon C5 may represent asetting function. For example, the icon C5 may check the power of theinteractive device 30, verify the recognition mark of the input devicefor pairing, etc.

FIGS. 12A and 12B schematically illustrate a confirmation operation ofthe interactive device in response to a confirmation signal. As shown inFIG. 12A, if the user selects icon C1 on the user interface 350, icon C1is triggered to generate the confirmation signal to perform theconfirmation function. As shown in FIG. 12B, the mounting surface 4 ofthe operation space 2 has a display device 3 installed thereon, and themounting surface 4A has a display device 3A installed thereon. Theinteractive device 30 is paired with the input device 10. As shown inFIG. 12B, when the user points the interactive device 30 to the displaydevice 3 and selects icon C1 on the user interface 350, the interactivedevice 30 transmits the action information to the image processingdevice 40 in response to the confirmation data, so that the displaydevice 3 displays image P1. Similarly, when the user points theinteractive device 30 to the display device 3A and selects icon C1 ofthe user interface 350, the interactive device 30 transmits the actioninformation to the image processing device 40 in response to theconfirmation data, so that the display device 3A displays the image.This way, the image data can be output to different display devices toproduce the displayed image without using a central control computer.

FIGS. 13A, 13B and 13C schematically illustrate a switching operation ofthe interactive device in response to a switching signal. As shown inFIG. 13A, if the user selects icon C2 of the user interface 350, icon C2is triggered to generate the switching signal to perform the switchingfunction. As shown in FIG. 13B, the mounting surface 4 of operationspace 2 has a display device 3 installed thereon, and the interactivedevice 30 is paired to both the input device 10 and the input device10A. The images provided by the input device 10 and input device 10A aredifferent. As shown in FIG. 13B, before the user selects icon C2, thedisplay device 3 displays image P1 from the input device 10. Then, asshown in FIG. 13C, when the user selects icon C2 on the user interface350, the interactive device 30 outputs the action information to theimage processing device 40 in response to the switching signal. Thus,the image displayed on the display device 3 is switched from the initialimage P1 provided by the input device 10 to image P2 provided by theinput device 10A. This way, the image data generated by different inputdevices 10 can be output to a desired display device without the needfor a central control computer. In this embodiment, the interactivedevice 30 is paired with multiple input devices 10 and 10A using themethod described with reference to FIG. 6; then, icon C2 is used toselect one of the input devices so that its image data is output to thedisplay device 3. Thus, the interactive device 30 of embodiments of thepresent invention can use a one-to-one or one-to-multiple pairing topair the interactive device 30 with the input device(s) based on theapplication scenario.

FIG. 13D schematically illustrates another switching operation of theinteractive device 30 in response to a switching signal. As shown inFIG. 13D, the mounting surface 4 of the operation space 2 has thedisplay device 3 installed on it, and mounting surface 4A has thedisplay device 3A installed on it. The interactive device 30 is pairedwith the input device 10 and the input device 10A. Before the userselects icon C2 on the user interface 350, the display device 3 displaysthe image P1 provided by the input device 10. Then, as shown in FIG.13D, when the user points the interactive device 30 to the displaydevice 3A and selects icon C2 on the user interface 350, the interactivedevice 30 transmits the action information to the image processingdevice 40 in response to the switching signal, so that the image P2 isdisplayed on the display device 3A. This way, the image data fromdifferent input devices can be output to different display devices toproduce the displayed image without using a central control computer.

FIGS. 14A and 14B schematically illustrate a briefing operation of theinteractive device 30 in response to a briefing signal. As shown in FIG.14A, if the user selects the icon C3 on the user interface 350, icon C3is triggered to generate the briefing signal to perform a briefingfunction. As shown in FIG. 14B, the display device 3 displays the imageP1 generated by the input device 10. When the user selects icon C3 onthe user interface 350, the image processing device 40 generates acursor Q1 on the display device 3 based on the briefing signal and theaction information. In other words, the image processing device 40simulates a cursor Q1 base on the action information, and superimposesthe image of cursor Q1 on the image P1. Thereafter, the image processingdevice 40 simulates the movement of the cursor Q1 in directionsdetermined by the posture and movement trajectory of the interactivedevice 30.

FIG. 15 schematically illustrates another briefing operation of theinteractive device 30 in response to a briefing signal. As shown in FIG.15, the mounting surface 4 of the operation space 2 has the displaydevice 3 installed thereon. The interactive device 30 is paired with theinput device 10, the interactive device 30A is paired with the inputdevice 10A, and the interactive device 30B is paired with the inputdevice 10B. The display device 3 displays the image P1 generated by theinput device 10. When the respective users all select icon C3 of therespective interactive devices 30, 30A and 30B, the image processingdevice 40 generates, based on the briefing signal and action informationof the corresponding interactive devices, cursors Q1, Q2 and Q3 on thedisplay device 3. In other words, the image processing device 40simulates cursor Q1 based on the action information of the interactivedevice 30, simulates cursor Q2 based on the action information of theinteractive device 30A, and simulates cursor Q3 based on the actioninformation of the interactive device 30B, and then superimposes theimages of the cursors Q1, Q2 and Q3 in the image P1. This way, theactions of the different interactive devices can be depicted asdifferent cursors in the same displayed image.

FIGS. 16A and 16B schematically illustrate a central control operationof the interactive device 30 in response to a central control signal. Asshown in FIG. 16A, if the user selects the icon C4 on the user interface350, icon C4 is triggered to generate a central control signal toperform a central control function. As shown in FIG. 16B, the displaydevice 3 displays image P1 provided by the input device 10. When theuser selects icon C4 on the user interface 350, the image processingdevice 40 transmits the action information to the input device 10 inresponse to the central control signal, so that the display device 3displays a main cursor QC1 generated by the input device 10. Morespecifically, the input device 10 generates the main cursor QC1 based onthe action information, and superimpose the image of the main cursor QC1with the image P1. In other words, the input device 10 simulates themovement of the main cursor QC1 in directions determined by the postureand movement trajectory of the interactive device 30.

FIGS. 17A and 17B schematically illustrate another central controloperation of the interactive device in response to a central controlsignal. As shown in FIG. 17A, the mounting surface 4 of the operationspace 2 has the display device 3 in stalled thereon, and the mountingsurface 4A has the display device 3A in stalled thereon. The interactivedevice 30 is paired with the input device 10, and the interactive device30A is paired with the input device 10A. The display device 3 displaysthe image P1 provided by the input device 10, and the display device 3Adisplays the image P2 provided by the input device 10A. Further, whenthe user selects icon C4 on the user interface 350 of the interactivedevice 30, the image processing device 40 transmits the actioninformation from the interactive device 30 to the input device 10 inresponse to the central control signal, so that the main cursor QC1generated by the input device 10 is displayed on the display device 3 inthe manner described earlier.

Similarly, on the input device 10A, when the user selects icon C4 on theuser interface 350 of the interactive device 30A, the image processingdevice 40 transmits the action information from the interactive device30A to the input device 10A in response to the central control signal,so that a cursor generated by the input device 10A is displayed on thecorresponding display device (e.g., if the interactive device 30A ispointing to the display device 3, then the cursor is displayed on thedisplay device 3). Preferably, when one of the different interactivedevices uses the central control function, the central control functionof the other interactive devices is disabled, to avoid the confusion inthe presentation caused by both interactive devices 30 and 30A havingthe right to control the main cursor QC1.

In the scenario shown in FIGS. 17A and 17B, the user selects icon C4 ofthe user interface 350 of the interactive device 30, and swings theinteractive device 30 to the left as depicted by the direction D5, tochange from an initial posture where it points to display device 3 (asindicated by the dashed lines) to a current posture where it points todisplay device 3A (as indicated by the solid lines). In response to thecentral control signal, the image processing device 40 changes theoutput destination of the action information of the interactive device30 from the initial input device 10 to the current input device 10A, sothat the display device 3A displays a main cursor QC2 generated by theinput device 10A. This way, the swinging action of the interactivedevice 30 can cause the main cursor generated by different input devicesto be respectively displayed on the corresponding display devices.

In the descriptions above, the interactive devices are said to beinstalled on the mounting surfaces. This may refer to physicallymounting display panels to the walls or furniture of the conferenceroom. Alternatively, the display devices may be projectors, and themounting surfaces may be screens or walls of the conference room onwhich the images are projected. It should be understood that, in thelatter situation, when the interactive device is said to be installed onthe mounting surface, what is meant is that the image is projected tothat mounting surface; and when the interactive device is said to bepointing to the display device, what is meant is that the interactivedevice is pointing to the image projected by the display device (theprojector).

It should also be noted that the various computations performed by thesystem may be performed by different components of the system, inparticular, the interactive devices 30 and the image processing device40, in a distributed manner. For example, the step of calculating theposition and pointing angle of the interactive device 30 based on thepositioning signals received by the sensors is preferably performed bythe interactive device 30, but can also be performed by the imageprocessing device 40. The step of calculating the projected location ofthe interactive device 30 (i.e. where on the mounting surfaces theinteractive device 30 is pointing to) based on the position and pointingangle of the interactive device 30 may be performed by either theinteractive device 30 or the image processing device 40. The step ofidentifying which display device the interactive device 30 is pointingto based on the position and pointing angle of the interactive device 30(or based on the projected location) may be performed by either theinteractive device 30 or the image processing device 40. One of ordinaryskill in the art will be able to implement such distributed computationscheme without undue experimentation. The various information that isrequired to perform the above calculations, such as the position andscanning parameters of the wireless positioning devices, boundaries ofthe operation space 2, locations and sizes of the display devices, etc.,is provided to the interactive device 30 and/or the image processingdevice 40 as needed. The information that needs to be transmitted fromone device to another also depends on which device performs whatcalculations. Thus, in a broader sense, the action information that istransmitted by the interactive device 30 to the image processing device40 may include the posture (position and angle) and movement trajectory(changes in the position and angle) of the interactive device 30, and/orthe projected location of the interactive device 30 and changes in theprojected location, and/or the identity of the display device pointed toby the interactive device 30 and the change in the identity.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variousmodification and variations can be made in the video interactive systemsand related methods of the present invention without departing from thespirit or scope of the invention. Thus, it is intended that the presentinvention cover modifications and variations that come within the scopeof the appended claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A video interactive system for use in anoperation space, wherein the operation space includes at least a firstdisplay device, a plurality of wireless positioning devices, and atleast a first input device, wherein each wireless positioning device isdisposed in the operation space and configured to transmit a positioningsignal, wherein the input device is configured to generate first imagedata, the video interactive system comprising: at least one interactivedevice, paired with the first input device, the interactive deviceincluding a plurality of sensors configured to receive the positioningsignals, wherein the interactive device is movably disposed in theoperation space and configured to generate action information based onthe received positioning signals, wherein the action informationcorresponds to the first display device; and an image processing device,electrically connected to the first input device and the first displaydevice, configured to receive the first image data from the first inputdevice and receive the action information from the interactive device,and to output the first image data to the first display device based onthe action information.
 2. The video interactive system of claim 1,wherein the interactive device includes an operation section and asensing section connected to the operation section, and wherein theplurality of sensors are disposed on the sensing section.
 3. The videointeractive system of claim 2, wherein the interactive device defines apointing direction, the sensing section has a front facet perpendicularto the pointing direction and a plurality of connecting facets, eachconnecting facet is joined to the front facet and the operation section,and each of the front facet and the connecting facets has at least onesensor disposed thereon.
 4. The video interactive system of claim 3,wherein each of the connecting facets is non-perpendicular to the frontfacet.
 5. The video interactive system of claim 1, wherein theinteractive device has a recognition mark, wherein the first inputdevice has a camera and is configured to read the recognition mark onthe interactive device to generate pairing information that pairs thefirst input device with the interactive device, and wherein the imageprocessing device is configured to, based on the pairing informationreceived from the first input device and the action information receivedfrom the paired interactive device, assigns an output channel to thefirst input device to output the first image data generated by the firstinput device to the first display device that corresponds to the actioninformation.
 6. The video interactive system of claim 5, wherein theoperation space further includes a second display device disposedtherein; wherein the interactive device is configured to generate actioninformation corresponding to the first display device or actioninformation corresponding to the second display device depending on aposture of the interactive device; wherein the image processing deviceis configured to, in response to a change of the received actioninformation from the action information corresponding to the firstdisplay device to the action information corresponding to the seconddisplay device, change the output channel of the first input device fromoutputting the first image data to the first display device tooutputting the first image data to the second display device.
 7. Thevideo interactive system of claim 1, wherein the interactive deviceincludes a user interface which is configured to generate a confirmationsignal when triggered by a user, and wherein the interactive device isconfigured to, in response to the confirmation signal, transmit theaction information to the image processing device.
 8. The videointeractive system of claim 1, further comprising a second input deviceconfigured to generate second image data, wherein the interactive devicehas a user interface, wherein the user interface is configured togenerate a switching signal when triggered by a user, and wherein theimage processing device is configured to, in response to receiving theswitching signal from the interactive device, switch from transmittingthe first image data to the first display device to transmitting thesecond image data to the first display device.
 9. The video interactivesystem of claim 1, wherein the interactive device includes a userinterface which is configured to generate a briefing signal whentriggered by a user, and wherein the image processing device isconfigured to, in response to receiving the briefing signal and theaction information from the interactive device, generate a cursor on thefirst display device.
 10. The video interactive system of claim 1,wherein the interactive device includes a user interface which isconfigured to generate a central control signal when triggered by auser, and wherein the image processing device is configured to, inresponse to receiving the central control signal from the interactivedevice, transmit the action information to the first input device,wherein the first input device is configured to generate a main cursorbased on the action information as a part of the image data for displayon the first display device.
 11. The video interactive system of claim1, wherein the interactive device is configured to calculate the actioninformation based on timing of receipt of the positioning signals by theplurality of sensors, and wherein the action information includes aposition and an angle of the interactive device.
 12. The videointeractive system of claim 1, wherein in a setting operation, the imageprocessing device is configured to output mark information to the firstdisplay device, the interactive device is configured to output initialaction information corresponding to the first display device while themark information is being output to the first display device, and theimage processing device is configured to store the initial actioninformation; wherein the image processing device is configured to, afterthe setting operation, receive another action information from theinteractive device, and to output the first image data to the firstdisplay device based on a comparison of the other action informationwith the stored initial action information.